


Black And Blue And Soft All Over

by Lumelle



Series: When Life Gives You Reality Warpers [3]
Category: Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, X-Men: First Class (2011) - Fandom
Genre: M/M, Protectiveness, Super Soldier Serum, Young Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-31
Updated: 2014-03-23
Packaged: 2018-01-10 17:05:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,834
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1162295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lumelle/pseuds/Lumelle
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When Tony Stark's friend offers to have Isaiah over so he can get away from the city, Eli is suspicious. Suspicious enough, in fact, that he decides to accompany his grandfather for a couple of days. The school in Westchester turns out to be more than he expected, but what truly stays with him is a certain young man, who makes Eli want to go back, even if he is the only "normal" one in the place. However, he soon comes to see being a mutant is not always fun and easy -- it can, in fact, turn out to be very dangerous...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As before, this 'verse is basically a mash-up of First Class, 616 comic verse, and Marvel Cinematic Universe, as well as an utter AU for all three. All the kids get to have loving families, and all the adults get to be with their loved ones, and the villains get what's coming to them but Erik isn't one.
> 
> **Please note** that the story will contain strong language, racism and racism-like issues, canon-level violence, and serious bodily injury. Please read accordingly.

There was someone in his room.

Steve only realized this through the bleary awareness of half-sleep, itself a stark testimony to how comfortable he had grown with this semblance of an ordinary life. Back during the war he would have been awake the moment he became aware of unexpected presence, even in his sleep able to tell the difference between friend and foe. It had been more than a good habit back then; those that did not master it often didn't wake up at all. Now, though, he had grown soft, which was not necessarily a bad thing, except when he heard someone shuffling through the room in the dark and had to take a moment to shake away the last clinging tendrils of dream.

"Mmm… what?" He opened his eyes a bit, struggling to get awake. The room was dark for the most part, but a familiar glow was approaching him through the shadows. "Tony? Is something the matter?"

"I think you'd like to get up." Tony's voice was a bit rougher than usual; from lack of sleep, perhaps, judging by the fact that he seemed to still be wearing yesterday's clothes, now that Steve's eyes were slowly getting used to the dim light.

"Why?" And yet he was already sitting up. "Are we under attack?"

"Yeah, no, I would have made a bit more noise if that were the case." Tony snorted, the bed shifting slightly as he dropped down on the edge of it, caring little for such boring conventions as personal space or not getting into another guy's bed without an invitation.

"So what is it?" Steve sighed. JARVIS let the lights come on, still dim enough not to sting his bleary eyes, but at least enough to see Tony by. "Because if you've come up with a brand new sandwich yet again, I'm not going to be interested until breakfast time."

"Nothing like that. Believe it or not, this is a serious matter."

"Right. Not an attack, but serious enough to wake me up at," he looked at the clock on his bedside table, "three AM?"

"Actually, yes. Yes, I believe so." Tony drew a deep breath. "So I found something in SHIELD files that I definitely did not expect."

"Tony." Steve sighed. "You know you shouldn't go hacking those files just because you're bored."

"I didn't! I actually had a reason to go looking, believe it or not." Tony ran a hand over his hair, a slightly wild look in his eyes. Steve wondered if it was from lack of sleep or something else. "Actually, I was looking through some old notes of my dad's that Pepper tracked down. You… know he was involved in the super soldier program, right?"

"A bit hard to miss that, yeah." Steve nodded. "What of it?"

"Well, did you know you weren't the first one they used the serum on?" Before Steve could respond, though, Tony lifted a hand to stop him. "And I don't mean the Red Skull or whatever. Here. In the US. When Erskin came over he didn't have a sample, and besides the thing wasn't perfected yet, anyway. They had to start more or less from scratch, and before they had what they gave you, they had to test it."

Steve frowned. "I never heard about that."

"Of course you didn't. Hell, I'm not sure Erskine did; good ol' dad's notes seemed to indicate he would have frowned on them using the serum on anyone while it was unfinished. But they did, several times. And I'm not sure it was always on volunteers."

Erskine. The one who had given him a chance, who had decided it was time for a little guy to join the fight. He definitely wouldn't have approved tests on unwilling subjects, or without being sure of his success. …Would he? "And… how did that go?"

"Quite simply? Most of their test subjects died." Steve's heart sank. "Except… there was one. Not a total success, no, but they didn't know it at the time; the bad things only really came out earlier. He got the version right before yours. All big and burly muscles, healing ability, the works."

Steve frowned. "Why even bother with me, then? Did they just need to show the process to the higher-ups, too?" But then why hadn't he ever met the man, or even heard of him?

"Afraid it's a bit less cheerful than that." Tony waved a hand, and the screen on the wall flared to life, JARVIS's work without a doubt. "You see… success or not, let's just say he wasn't the kind of face they wanted to give to their superior new soldier." Another flick of his hand, and a picture appeared on the screen. It was the face of a bald, serious-looking man, with sharp eyes and strong shoulders.

"He's black." The words were out before Steve could even think about it. "I mean, sorry, I mean, African-American. Is that…"

"Relax, Cap. Black is more or less okay, too. But yeah. Their first more or less success was black. So were, in fact, all the early test subjects. Even skinny little Steve Rogers was too valuable for the early versions, because for all that he was sickly and pale, at least he was white."

Steve swallowed, now. "And… what happened to him?"

"Well, dear dad's notes on him end here, but that's why I went for SHIELD. They had quite a bit more information." A flick of his fingers, and the screen was filled with data. "Basically? He pulled the same thing you did; went AWOL to fight the Nazis. Only, he got captured. And instead of medals and praise, he got locked up in Levenworth."

"No." And now, he felt sick. "That's just…"

"It's what the world was back then, Cap. Honestly, he was probably fortunate. Not only did they lock him up instead of shutting him up for good, but they only waited until the sixties to let him out. Which, yeah, is nothing short of monstrous, but at least he got out to his family again."

"He has family, then?" The soft tone of Steve's voice surprised even himself.

"Oh, yeah. Wife, kids, a bunch of grandkids. Most of them live farther away, but according to SHIELD's files, he lives with his wife and one of his grandsons right here in good old New York. Kid is in high school now, wife takes care of them both."

"And… how is he?" Though he wasn't sure he actually wanted to hear the answer.

"Not very well, I'm afraid." Tony sighed. "As I said, that particular serum only seemed like a success at first. It did a number on his brain, and the Nazis and Levenworth made it all worse. The files say he's physically still fit as a fiddle, but barely says a word. He's got his good days, but… he's not doing too well."

"Right." It wasn't fair. None of this was, none of this should have ever happened, yet here it was, laid out before him. The files, the facts, the shame. "Could I… meet him?"

"Oh, Steve, darling, already way ahead of you." Tony flashed him a grin, though even that seemed almost tired compared with his usual bright cheer. "Made sure both our schedules are clear tomorrow. I would have called ahead already, but JARVIS recommended that I wait until what to most people is known as 'a decent hour'. Why other hours would be any more indecent, I've no idea, but it's totally going to be my excuse the next time someone complains about me not wearing a shirt in my own goddamn house."

"I think you need some sleep, Tony." Not that Steve himself thought he could get back to sleep again. "Especially if you plan to accompany me."

"Well, of course I do. Need to apologize for what that part bastard of a father of mine had in screwing up the poor man's life." Tony ran his hand over his hair again. "Hopefully this particular foul deed doesn't get me almost killed on live TV. That'd just be embarrassing."

"I will try not to let that happen." Steve sighed. "Now, sleep. It would be even more embarrassing for you to fall asleep in the middle of the visit."

"Right. Should probably not do that." Tony stood up, now, stretching a bit. "JARVIS? I'm heading to bed. Wake me up at whatever it is the society has deemed to be 'decent hour'."

"Very well, Sir." Steve wondered if he just imagined the long-suffering tone in the artificial voice. "And you, Captain Rogers?"

"My usual time is fine, JARVIS. And try and make sure Tony actually ends up in bed, okay?" He was just going to ignore the mock-hurt gaze Tony threw his way. They both knew all too well his extraordinary ability to get distracted.

At least one of them ought to get some rest.

*

"Isaiah seems to be talking more than usual."

"Yeah, Steve has that effect on people." Tony accepted the cup of coffee from the nice lady with a smile, doing his best to ignore the occasional glares he was receiving from the young man sitting across from him. "He could probably get stones to reminisce about the old days."

"It's good to hear, in any case." She took another cup to her grandson with a small sigh. "He barely says two words nowadays, most of the time."

"I'm sorry." It seemed appropriate enough to say, and, well, he was. "How is he, in general?"

"Oh, physically, he's just fine. Never had a problem with that. It's just that he barely speaks, so it's hard to tell how he is otherwise." She sighed again. "The doctor said it might do him good to get out of the city for a while, but it's easier said than done."

"I see." Of course, that immediately sent the gears spinning in his head, but he had actually learned to keep his mouth shut for a minute or two by now. "No time for a holiday?"

"No money, is more the problem. We're living comfortably enough here, but it would not be cheap for him to stay somewhere." She gave him a rueful smile, then gathered herself with a very prim look. "Ah, do excuse me, I should take some coffee up to them."

"Oh, certainly. Don't mind me." He actually waited until she was gone before digging up his phone with a free hand, typing off a quick message. See, Steve, he did have some manners at least.

Of course, just because she was gone for the moment didn't mean he was entirely alone. Looking up, Tony found the boy still glaring at him as though he were personally responsible for all the evils in the world.

"So, what is it? Elijah, wasn't it?" As the boy seemed startled, he rolled his eyes. "Oh, please. Did you actually expect me not to notice you trying to drill a hole through my head with your eyes?"

"What are you doing here?" Well, at least he wasn't wasting time trying to be subtle.

"Right now? I'm sitting here enjoying some damn good coffee. Your grandma's a miracle, let me tell you."

"You know that's not what I meant."

"Maybe I do. Maybe I just didn't think I needed to answer someone who is juts going to take my words the worst possible way anyway." He gave the kid a level gaze. "Steve wanted to meet your grandfather. I claimed to come along as emotional support, though, truth be told, I'm the last damn person in the world to do something like that, bastard that I am."

"So why did you actually come?"

"You want the truth?" Of course he did. Young people always wanted the truth, they just didn't always know what the truth they were going to get was. "My father was involved in the creation of the super soldier serum."

Ah, yes, the glare turned into pure fire. "You are —"

"Oi. I wasn't even born until decades later, don't try to pin that on me. I've got plenty sins of my own without borrowing any from my dad." Tony sighed. "I'm well aware a lot of people's lives would've been a lot better without the involvement of my father, my own included. Doesn't mean I'm going to take responsibility for all of those."

"But you're doing so for grandpa." And why did he sound like that was a bigger crime than staying away would have been?

"Not quite. I'm not claiming responsibility, nor am I accepting blame from something that happened before I was even born, not even from you, my angry young friend. That doesn't mean I'm not willing to do something nice for a fellow victim of my father's ambition."

"Yeah, must be a real burden, being rich and famous."

"I'm not going to hash out my childhood traumas with some arrogant brat who thinks I must be a bastard just because I'm rich and white. Not to say I'm not, but that's for entirely different reasons. Now, if I thought there were any chance you might listen, I would tell you how my life has been anything but nice and sweet, but I figure that'd just be a waste of both of our time, and pointing out that my best friend is black would just be insulting."

"He's not going to accept, you know."

"What?" Tony blinked. "I seem to have missed something. Your grandma didn't drug this coffee or anything, did she? Because that'd be a bit unexpected from a fine old lady like her."

"Grandpa's not going to accept. You're planning to pay for it, aren't you? For him to stay somewhere away from the city. But he's not going to accept it, not your charity." The boy's jaw tightened. "His pride is all he's got left."

"Believe me, I know pride. I never expected such an offer to be accepted, which is why I'm not going to make one." His phone buzzed, now, drawing his eyes to the screen. Seeing the message, he smiled. Just as he'd expected, only even faster. "Instead, I'm going to let other people make their own offers."

"That's not going to change anything."

"Oh, we'll see about that." Just then, the kid's grandma returned, and Tony gave her a smile. "Ah, perfect timing. There was actually something I wanted to tell you."

"Oh? And what would that be?" She raised a pair of elegant eyebrows. Of course. She may not have spent her time glaring at him, but she had to also be suspicious of the motivations of Tony Stark to stick around on such a social call.

"Actually, after I found your husband's file, I informed some friends of mine about the situation." Which was true enough. Five minutes ago was still after the night before. "See, these friends own an estate upstate in Westchester; they run a private school there. I just got a message from them. Apparently they would love for him to visit for a while."

"You will have to ask Isaiah about that." There was a hint of tiredness in her eyes. "He does not take well to offers of charity." And why did the boy give him such a smug look? Tony had never once doubted his word on the matter.

"There is no charity involved, I assure you. As it happens, one of my friends has… personal reasons to be grateful to him." Because the world was ugly and unfair, but they hardly had any attractive alternatives, so they had to make do.

She looked at him for a moment, but apparently whatever she found in his eyes was acceptable enough that she nodded. "Very well. Talk to Isaiah once they are done. If your reasons are good enough, I'm sure he will accept your friends' offer."

"I certainly hope he will." It was too little, too late, but it was all he could do at the moment.

It would not erase old hurts, but perhaps, in time, it could lessen the anger in young Elijah's eyes.

*

Sure, he had heard Tony call this place an estate, but Eli had still not quite fully realized what that meant until the Stark-hired driver drove him and Isaiah through large, imposing gates of wrought iron and old money.

The word estate certainly seemed accurate, with a vast garden reaching out on either side of the road, with what seemed like an entire forest peeking out from behind the huge mansion. There was more than one building on the grounds, the main one extending far wider than Eli would have thought reasonable for anything even masquerading as private property. Sure, it was supposedly a school, but he had the feeling it had not first been built as such.

The car came to a stop, and his grandpa went to get out of the car, doubtlessly feeling cramped; the car was big, yes, hired by Stark as it had been, but few things were suited for the frame of a super soldier. Eli followed him, grabbing his grandpa's suitcase and his own smaller bag. He might have felt like turning tail and heading right back to New York, but he'd said he'd at least look at the place for a weekend, and it would not have been good to abandon his grandpa.

"Um… excuse me," he said, stopping a couple of boys about his own age walking by. Students of the school, he presumed. "We're looking for Mr. Lehnsherr?" At least he was fairly sure that was the name they had been given.

"Oh! Right, he mentioned something about visitors." One of the boys, with dark hair and eyes, smiled. "See that building over there? He should be right behind the corner."

"Right. Thanks." He looked over to where the boy was pointing, then became aware of the nagging voice of his grandma at the back of his head. "Ah, I'm sorry. I'm Eli, Eli Bradley, and this is my granddad."

"Billy Eisenhardt, and this is Teddy Altman." The boy grinned. "I'm sure we'll run into each other if you're going to stay here."

"Probably, yeah." He didn't know how likely that was, if he was only going to be here for a couple of days and the place had as many people as it rightfully should given its size, but that was no reason to be impolite. "So, behind that corner?"

"Right. You can't mistake him." And whatever that meant, Eli wasn't sure he wanted to contemplate.

For all that grandpa had little desire to take part in the conversation, he had at least paid attention, heading in the indicated direction with long strides that Eli had to work to keep up with. The building mentioned was not too far, right at the side of the front yard. Rounding the corner, Eli still wondered just how he was supposed to recognize this mystery man.

There was a man standing in the air.

Not the air, Eli realized after a moment of stunned confusion. His feet were firmly planted on a piece of metal grating, one that just happened to be hanging in mid-air. The man's attention was on the half-finished wall in front of him, his hand making rhythmic motions in the air. With each small wave, countless nails sunk into the exposed boards in front of him, quite happy without the slightest sign of hammers or other aid.

He had not quite yet shaken himself from the stunned surprise as another realization hit him. Erik Lehnsherr. One of the best known names in the field of mutant civil rights. The man who had tirelessly striven for rights and recognition for his people back when most of the rest of the world had still considered them little more than fairy tales and freak occurrences.

The man who had invited his grandpa to stay was Magneto himself.

"Mister Lehnsherr." He was almost startled to hear his grandpa's voice. "We're here."

Immediately, the man turned towards them, his eyes sharp under white brows. He seemed almost ordinary, with his shirt sleeves rolled up and hair slightly tousled from the hint of a breeze in the air, yet there was something about him that made Eli shiver. "Mister Bradley, I presume? And you must be Elijah. My apologies; I did not notice you." He floated down to the ground, easy as you please, as though he were doing nothing more remarkable than walking down the pegs of a ladder.

"Um." Eli was vaguely aware that he should have said something, yet found himself grasping for words; all thoughts he might have otherwise had were chased off by the part of him that was berating himself for being so stupid as not to have realized the truth earlier. It wasn't like Lehnsherr was so common a name that he wouldn't have even thought of the possibility.

"…Thank you for the invitation." Grandpa's words were slow and measured, as always thought out before he voiced any of them, lest some get forgotten along the way. The hand he reached out was steady and strong as ever, though, as Eli well knew, enough so that he was almost startled to see that Magneto returned the handshake without the slightest waver of an expression.

"Oh, not at all. I am honored to be able to extend that invitation. Charles and I both." He shook Eli's hand next, a surprisingly firm grip from what should have been an old man, with a strong, weathered arm and a steady gaze to go with it. What Eli's gaze was drawn to, though, was the slightly faded sequence of dark numbers under his skin. As he managed to tear his eyes away, he was met with a sharp yet surprisingly friendly gaze.

Perhaps they actually had made the invitation of their own accord, not as part of some ruse by Stark.

"Charles Xavier?" Which was probably a stupid question, but the words were out already.

"Exactly. My partner in life and crime alike." Magneto's lips twitched slightly. "But perhaps I should show you inside, now. The wall can wait another bit."

"What happened to it?" Now that Eli looked at it, it seemed he was making repairs, rather than building something entirely new.

"Oh, nothing much. One of my darling grandsons merely blew it up recently." Magneto snorted even as he started to walk towards the main building to show the way. "Shall we, then?"

Well. If nothing else, this was going to be an interesting weekend.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eli meets Kurt, who seems to quite like Eli. It's inevitable that they must part, but fortunately, that's what text messages are for. (Also, Billy and Teddy could be more careful, but that's neither here nor there.)

If the place had reeked of old money from the outside, seeing it from the inside did not exactly change Eli's first impression.

The whole place was dark wooden panels and endless corridors, the entrance hall alone probably bigger than the apartment he shared with his grandparents. They were led down apparently identical corridors without hesitation, giving Eli ample opportunity to take in the surroundings. And yet, for all the thick carpets and oak doors, this was also clearly a modern school, with TV screens and notice boards here and there, a forgotten notebook lying on a chair in a corner. He could hear voices occasionally as they passed what he presumed were classrooms, saw someone crossing the yard as they passed by a window. Nothing but a school. Right.

They passed by an open do or, and Eli glanced in and stopped in his tracks. The enormous room was covered from floor to ceiling with bookshelves, each crammed full of books. His mouth fell open but words would simply not come. Yeah, he worked in a library, but that was nothing compared with this.

He wasn't even entirely aware he had stopped before he felt something tug at the bag in his hands. Broken away from his awe, he looked down to see the bag stirring in its hands, metal fittings threatening to pull the entire thing with them. "What the —"

"Let me take care of those." There was a look of amusement mixed with exasperation on Magneto's face, and oh god, what was his life that he could even think that? "I'm living with a professor, I know the look of someone in love with a library."

Eli felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment. "I didn't mean —"

"Go ahead, look around to your heart's content. I'm sure we can show you to your room later." Magneto's lips twitched, and now grandpa's suitcase was stirring as well. "Charles would never forgive me if I kept a young man from books."

Eli glanced at his grandpa, torn between duty and desire. As Isaiah merely nodded at him, though, he let go of their things, gravitating towards the library instead. He barely even took notice of the bag and suitcase floating off after the two older men as he headed to the nearest bookshelf.

He could have looked around for ages, walking down the shelves and scanning the titles, letting his fingertips carefully graze the backs of thick tomes, marveling at the feel of leather. It had certainly been a long while as he finally forced himself to come to a stop, drawing out a particularly interesting-looking book and leafing through it.

When he looked up from the book he almost squeaked in fright as he found a face upside down right in front of his.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you." The face stayed stubbornly upside down even as its owner grinned, white teeth appearing in the middle of blue dark enough to almost be black. "You just seemed so focused, I was wondering what was so interesting."

"Uh." Come on, Eli, get a grip. Are you an idiot? "Hello?" Well, apparently the answer was yes.

"Hi!" And suddenly the face was the right way around again as its owner dropped down from where he had apparently been hanging from the edge of the bookshelf, landing on the floor in a crouch. "New around here, ja?"

"Um, I guess?" Eli tried his best not to stare, but it was pretty hard. Was that an actual tail? "I'm, uh, I'm just here for the weekend. With my grandpa. He's staying."

"So you're Mr. Bradley's grandson, then?" What, did everyone in the whole damn place know? "Meine Mutter mentioned you'd be coming."

"Right." Why did he have pointy ears? Was he an elf or something? …A German elf? "I'm Eli Bradley." Well, at least the whole school would soon know his name, with the number of people he seemed to be attracting.

"Kurt Darkholme. Or Adler, or Xavier, I'm not terribly picky. Everyone calls me Kurt, though." And here was another blindingly white grin.

"Xavier? Are you related to Professor Xavier, then?"

"Ja. He's my uncle." Kurt didn't look much older than Eli himself, though, from what little he could tell. Well, at least it made it slightly less worrying that he apparently knew about his grandpa. "You like the library? It's uncle Charles's pride and joy."

"It's marvelous." It wasn't just an empty compliment, either; even after a while spent looking through the books, just glancing around almost took his breath away. "I'm not sure I want to go home at all."

"It can have that effect, yes." Kurt chuckled. "Could I tempt you away at least long enough for dinner, though? It's almost time."

"Dinner?" Eli blinked. "I — what time is it?"

"Approximately three hours since you arrived, if what I heard from Billy is accurate." Kurt tilted his head to the side. "You've been here the whole time?"

"Uh. Looks like that." Eli sighed, running a hand over his head. "Damn, I didn't mean to get so caught up."

"No harm done; your grandpa's been spending time with my uncles, I believe." With a hop and a roll and a leap, Kurt was suddenly crouching near the door, his eyes shining golden under dark brows, the tip of his tail swishing about his ankles. "Come on. I will show you the way, ja? You must be hungry by now."

"Right." Eli swallowed. "Lead the way."

However, he wasn't entirely sure the strange feeling at the pit of his stomach was hunger.

*

Something about hanging out with Eli was nice.

Of course, he wasn't exactly suffering whenever he spent time with his friends, either. He had never been lonely since they had moved to the school more or less permanently, not with so many people around. The situation had only improved after Billy and Tommy arrived, bringing Teddy with them. He had had friends before, but none as good as those three. Even with his other friends at school, he had never quite felt like he fit in.

It was sad, really, that he would ever feel like an outsider even in a place like this, however infrequent and fleeting the feeling. He knew he wasn't the only one, even; there were others with visible mutations, others who had to deal with surprise and shock and even revulsion whenever they met a new person. Still, it hurt whenever he saw that look, the one that underlined that no matter what, he would always be different.

Tommy and Billy had never been like that. He supposed it was because they had known him more or less their whole lives, had grown up to think he was normal, just a slightly different normal from the two of them. Teddy had also accepted him without a problem, knowing well the pain of being different, in appearance and ability alike. It was hardly a surprise that a guy who sometimes had green skin and scales wouldn't look down on him for having blue fur instead.

Eli was unlike anything he was used to, though. Instead of being afraid or disgusted, or even just growing used to it after some initial curiosity, he seemed to be fascinated by Kurt's appearance. He tried to hold himself back at first, that much was clear, but once Kurt had told him it was fine to ask questions, it was like a dam had been broken. How strong exactly was his tail? Since he had fur, did he ever have a shedding season, and why did he still have hair on his head? Did he know if the shape of his ears affected how much he heard? And almost as soon he had shut up again, apologizing for harassing him, ducking his face.

Kurt answered him as well as he could, trying not to seem too amused. The curiosity was quite understandable, after all, and at least Eli wasn't tugging at his tail like kids sometimes did the rare times he went out in public. Besides, there were different kinds of questions, and different ways of asking them. There were people who treated him like an exotic animal, something to be poked and prodded for their amusement; those people Kurt avoided. Eli, however, acted like his mutation was a personal achievement of some sort, always respecting his boundaries. In a rather backwards way, this led to Kurt allowing him liberties he usually reserved for family alone. Not two days after he had first met Eli, he found himself practically crouched over him, tail occasionally flicking over to turn the page on the book they were both reading. Eli, far from being freaked out or disgusted, merely let his fingers occasionally brush against the tip of his tail as they reached for the page at the same time. This invariably sent tiny shivers along the entire length of Kurt's spine, something that he was determined to ignore.

Ignoring was the best policy, anyway. After all, soon he'd have no other choice; Eli was here only for the weekend. He probably didn't even notice what he was doing, even less how it was affecting Kurt, and whatever it was Kurt felt was not that earth-shattering. Eli would be leaving in the evening, and he'd be back to spending his time with Tommy and Billy and Teddy, and that was it. Nothing was going to come of his strange feelings.

"Kurt?"

"Hm?" He tried not to appear startled or wonder if he'd suddenly started thinking aloud. Eli was looking at him, yes, but not with a weird expression of any kind. "What?"

"How opposed are you to giving your number to almost-strangers?"

His tail twitched again, just a bit, but he managed a smile. "I do think that could be negotiated."

Okay, so perhaps he could make something of it, given the time.

*

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_OMG you won't believe what happened_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Try me?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_So Mutter walked in on Billy and Teddy._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_You're kidding me._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Sadly no. Nothing too bad, though._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_…How bad was it?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Apparently shirts were not involved. And they have busy busy hands_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_That's… traumatizing._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_She agreed. And told Uncle Charles. Who told Billy's mom, who told Teddy's mom._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Poor boys._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Yeeeah. So now they're not allowed into each other's rooms for three weeks, and after that only with supervision._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_That's pretty strict._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Yes, well, there is the part where they're not actually legal yet, so…_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Right. Better not give opportunities for temptation._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Of course, that didn't stop Uncle Charles from deciding it'd be a good idea to have an impromptu school-wide sex ed class._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Oh God. How'd that go?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Let's just say your grandpa volunteered to hand out condoms._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_…That's a joke, right? Please tell me that's a joke._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Would I joke about that?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_I don't know. Would you?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_At least you're not around while your grandfather takes great interest in the healthy and responsible sex lives of teenagers._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_My condolences._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Eh, I'm practically an adult, I'm not the main focus group here._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_And what does that mean in practice?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_…Mutter threw a packet of condoms at my head and told me to make sure to lock the door if I use them._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_I can just feel the love there._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Much better than the private lecture the twins and Teddy got from my dear cousins._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_I bet Tommy was just delighted to be included._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_He made his displeasure well known. Apparently this stuff is not applicable to him at present._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_So I probably shouldn't mention that I've seen him around here with a girl?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_WHAT?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Pretty sure it was him, he's pretty hard to mistake even if I only met him briefly._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_And you saw him in New York? With a girl?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Yeah. Wait a minute, I snapped a picture._

_Picture received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_…That's totally Tommy. With a girl I've never seen before._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Thought so. I tried not to turn stalker, just saw them going into a café._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Your permission to forward this to Wanda if Tommy gives Billy pain about his dating again?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Go nuts. Or ask him directly who she is. That ought to be interesting._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Mein Gott, I could kiss you right now._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Sadly no, since I'm not there._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_…Kurt? You still there?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Ja, ja. Sorry, just… processing._

_Message received  
To: Eli  <3_

_In a good way or a bad way?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Mainly weighing the chances of my actually managing to bamf over there versus the likelihood I'd kill myself trying._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Please don't kill yourself just for that. I'm not going to kiss you if you're dead._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_And if I'm alive?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_It's not out of the realm of possibility._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Except you're still over there and I'm stuck here._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Well, it is summer break soon…_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Think we could do anything about the distance then?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Well, I should check in on grandpa, right? See how much better he is doing. I'm sure grandma will want to see him, too._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Of course. I'm sure Uncle Erik won't have anything against you staying a while, he's quite fond of Isaiah._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Would he have a problem otherwise?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Well, you and your grandpa were the first people staying here I can remember who weren't mutants or personal friends of Charles._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_…Seriously?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Yeah. It's not that he hates non-mutants or anything, he's just… afraid._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Afraid? Of what?_

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_…Mutter once mentioned that Wanda wasn't his first daughter._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Uh. I think I can extrapolate._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Yeah. Sorry, didn't mean to get all gloomy on you._

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Don't worry about it, I'm the one who asked._

_Message sent  
To: Eli  <3_

_Still. Anything I can do to cheer you up?_

_Message received  
From: Eli  <3_

_Pick up when I call?_


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eli comes back to the school, and after a frankly terrifying run-in with Kurt's mother, everything seems great. Of course, things can't stay that way, because Eli can't keep his foot out of his mouth, nor himself out of trouble.
> 
> Sometimes, you have to be a hero even without being super.

If at all possible, Eli was even more nervous about his visit this time around than he had been the first time.

On one hand, he now knew this wasn't some grand scheme of Stark's, and was also reasonably sure he would be welcome. Billy and Teddy at least had been rather friendly the weekend he had spent there before, though he was not as certain of Tommy's favor after revealing his secret little affair to Kurt. And he would see his Grandpa again, which would be great. From what he had heard from Kurt, he was doing much better nowadays, so obviously getting away from the city had helped.

On the other hand, well, there was Kurt. Eli could not have been more delighted to see him, no, he had been counting days for ages now, but at the same time he was growing increasingly nervous. It had been easy enough to remember the attraction at home, when their only contact had been e-mails and text messages and phone calls, thinking of the few times he had touched Kurt's soft fur, marveled at the flexibility of his tail. Now, though, he was increasingly nervous that they had both blown it all out of proportion, that they wouldn't find each other as attractive now that they were about to see each other again.

Okay, so really, he was only truly nervous that Kurt wouldn't find him attractive anymore. It was inconceivable he couldn't feel the same.

Regardless, it was with some trepidation that he approached the main school building. Kurt and the others knew he was coming today, though he hadn't been able to give an exact time; Stark had certainly been generous in his offer to bring him all the way upstate again, but apparently had something against reliable schedules. Therefore there was nobody there to greet him as he walked up to the doors, the grounds empty of life as most students had cleared the place to go spend the vacation at home.

It could thus be forgiven that he made the most unmanly meeping sound when he was grabbed right before he could reach the doors and dragged aside.

Eli was so surprised by this kind of welcome, it took him a moment to dig his heels in and actually pay attention. As he did so, he blinked at the blue woman holding onto his arm. "You're Kurt's mother, aren't you?" He vaguely remembered meeting her before, but it had been only in passing.

"One of them, yes." She narrowed her golden eyes at him, and yes, definite resemblance there. "And you're the one he thinks about dating."

"Technically, I'm pretty sure we are already dating, it's just been long-distance." At least that was the impression he had got. Did Kurt think otherwise?

No, Eli, no panicking just yet. Certainly not over something your boyfriend's mother of all people said.

Boyfriend. He rather liked that idea.

"Details." She waved a hand dismissively. "The point is, Kurt is rather looking forward to your arrival, and I'm not cruel enough to deny him that, so stop looking like I'm going to eat you alive. However, I do insist on a proper chat before I let you run loose."

"Right." Eli swallowed. "I'm listening." And apparently allowing her to drag him along, because it seemed like a better idea than fighting her just now. He did not want to make an enemy of her.

"So. Kurt likes you. I do not know you well, but his friends seem to have a good opinion of you as well from the weekend you spent here, and your grandfather is pleasant enough for a human, so I'm willing to trust his judgment on this. That, and Irene hasn't foreseen any big problems, which is fortunate for you."

"Irene?" Eli frowned. He felt like the name should have rung some bells, but his mind was drawing a blank. He decided to blame that on the whole part where he was getting dragged around by a frankly terrifying woman.

"My wife. Kurt's other mother. She can see the future." And sure, just toss that out in casual conversation, as far as one could call this in any way casual. "And in case you forgot, I am Raven, should you wish to make things a bit simpler than 'Kurt's blue mother' or whatever. Especially since I'm not always blue."

"Right." Eli swallowed again. "Uh. I think we were introduced earlier, but just in case, I'm Eli. Eli Bradley."

"Oh, believe me, I know. Kurt's been insufferable lately, barely shuts up about you. You would think all the teasing from twins would stop him, but for some reason Tommy has been surprisingly tame about the whole thing." Which would probably be the effect of blackmail.

"Kurt's been talking about me?" Because obviously he had to catch onto that.

"Oh, incessantly." She rolled her eyes, or at least he was fairly sure she did. It was kind of hard to tell with all the gold. "Which is why I figured a serious talk was in order." They had reached some kind of a side door, which she opened rather unceremoniously, finally letting go of him to let him walk inside with his luggage. He did so, trying not to feel like he was walking right into a trap of some kind.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" The room was normal enough, a small sitting room of some kind, which he took as a good sign. No torture devices at least.

"You and Kurt, obviously." She took a seat, which he took as his cue to do so as well. "How old are you, again?"

"Uh. Sixteen. Turning seventeen in a month." And why did he already have the feeling he knew what this was about?

"Great." She brushed a lock of red hair from her face, looking thoroughly unimpressed. "Until then, you are not to be alone with Kurt with the door closed. While I'm sure you're both sensible young men," her tone suggested she did not think so at all, "I'm not going to take the risk that Kurt might end up on a sex offender registry just because you two couldn't keep it in your pants for a whole damn month."

"Right." He was glad for his skin tone now, or he probably would have been bright red. "Uh. Duly noted."

"Don't worry, Kurt is aware of that as well, so you don't need to inform him." Eli sent a quiet apology to Kurt for having had to go through that discussion. "Of course, there is another point I'm rather concerned about."

"Let me guess." Eli made a face. "If I ever hurt him, you're going to make me suffer?"

"Not quite." She examined her nails, now, as though they weren't absolutely perfect. "I'm not quite idealistic to think that would happen. People fight, even and especially those in romantic relationships. It's not like I can claim I haven't ever hurt Irene's feelings, myself, and sometimes, it hasn't been accidental. So, it would be damn hypocritical of me to demand that of you, and for all my flaws that is not something I'm willing to be accused of. Besides, for all his sweetness Kurt does have a temper, and if you just took everything he can dish out without retaliating, you'd be too much of a wuss to ever make him happy."

"Uh. So what is it, then?" This was not exactly how he had expected this talk to go.

"Simple." She finally lifted her eyes to his, so very similar to Kurt's yet somehow entirely different. "If you ever, for one moment, make Kurt feel like he's undesirable or unattractive or in any way inferior because of his mutation, I will have Billy turn you into a frog so I can roast you in butter and eat you."

"Got it." Eli blinked slowly. He wasn't entirely sure that was an empty threat, for all its apparent absurdity. "Um. Is there anything else, or can I go now?"

"Glad we have an understanding." She smiled, and it was not a pleasant expression. "Go on, scamper. I'm sure my darling son is just bursting at the seams to see you."

Eli made a hasty retreat, not even bothering to ask for directions. Getting lost in the school's apparently endless corridors was probably better than getting on her nerves.

It was just as well, really, considering that Kurt dropped down right in front of him before he had managed to get halfway down the corridor.

Never before had a tackle hug been more welcome.

*

For all his worries, once Eli got away from Raven everything seemed to be perfect. Kurt was very happy to see him, and did not seem to have changed his mind about the dating thing since their phone call the night before. Even his grandpa only seemed mildly amused when Kurt dragged him into the dining hall for dinner with an arm hooked through his, and the twins indeed held back on the teasing. All in all, his worst worries seemed to all have been unfounded.

It took him a moment to get used to being at the mansion, but once he figured out the routine it was surprisingly easy to find things to fill his days with. They visited the town on occasion, or explored the vast grounds either with the twins and Teddy or by themselves, or just cuddled on a couch somewhere and watched TV. There was a lot of talking, and a lot of kissing, and a lot of moments of just holding Kurt close that made him rather wish he had been seventeen already. All in all, Eli could not have hoped for things to be better.

Of course, it would have been stupid to expect that to last long. And of course it would be his own stupidity that changed things.

There was no warning, because these things rarely came with their own alarms or more people might have avoided them, not even an indication that things might soon be less than perfect. It was a perfectly ordinary afternoon spent in the absolutely magnificent library; Kurt sometimes claimed Eli liked it more than he liked Kurt and he wasn't sure he could be entirely honest when denying that. There were so many books, so much to read and see and just enjoy, and it was made all the better by Kurt being there as well.

A loud boom from the outside startled him, making him rush to the window. In the distance there was smoke coming from somewhere behind the building. "What the Hell was that?"

"Ah, that must have been the old shed," Kurt said, appearing at his side as though sudden explosions were no cause for concern at all. "Ever since Tommy blew up that wall Uncle Erik has been talking about using him to get rid of the old garden shed so he can build a new one. Wanda must have finally relented in her opinion that it's far too dangerous for him to do."

"Right." Eli sighed wistfully. "That's so cool, though. I almost wish I had mutant powers."

"No, you don't."

"And why not?" Eli turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow. "I think I know better than you do what I wish."

"No, you don't," Kurt repeated more firmly. "It's not just fun and games, you know. For every mutant with cool powers like Tommy's there's someone like me who can't even go outside without getting stared at or worse, or someone like Billy who's afraid of losing control. It's not just all sparkly magic and flying for him, either; he still feels bad about what he did when his powers came in, and that guy had been tormenting him for ages."

"But you're beautiful." And he was, with all that soft fur and the lovely shade of indigo and the shining golden eyes. Eli could have just stared at him for ages and never gotten tired of it. "It makes you special."

"Oh, right. It makes me special." Kurt made a face. "I'll be sure to tell that to the old lady who once tried to call animal control on me."

Eli winced. "Sorry, I didn't mean it like that."

"Of course you didn't. To mean it like that, you would've had to actually think for more than a second." Kurt bounced back, putting more distance between them, and somehow that hurt more than seemed in any way reasonable. "There's a reason we have this school, Eli, and it's because a lot of us don't feel safe out there. A lot of us aren't safe anywhere else, regardless of what we might want to believe. I've been told my whole life that I'm no worse than anyone else for being like this, and I know that everyone who tells me means it with all their heart, but there are still times I would give just about anything to just be a normal guy for a day."

"I'm sorry." Eli sighed. "I should have known better."

"Yeah, you should have." Kurt bounced again, and now he was perched on top of a bookshelf, too far up for Eli to reach for. "I think I'll go see if Erik needs help with cleaning up the mess."

"Wait," was all Eli could get out before Kurt had already disappeared in a puff of smoke and sulfur smell. He sighed, running a hand over his scalp as he stared at the spot where Kurt had been just seconds ago.

Well. He had certainly messed that up.

It was probably for the best if he gave Kurt some time to cool down before trying to make amends.

*

For all that he knew he should give Kurt some space for a moment, it was easier said than done. Not because he kept running into Kurt — rather, his boyfriend seemed to be doing his best to stay out of sight entirely — but because all of a sudden, Eli had no idea what to do with himself.

He tried to linger in the library, but for some reason even all those books didn't seem appealing enough without the constant presence of Kurt at his side. Seeking out the rest of his friends didn't seem like a good idea, either. Billy and Teddy were sure to be glued at the hip right now, as Teddy was going to be returning home for the summer in a couple of days, and that was not something he wanted to see right now. Tommy on the other hand would be sure to question him about why he was alone, especially if he had still been around when Kurt headed for the ruins of the shed, and that was also not a pleasant thought. All in all, it would probably be for the best if he simply stayed away from everyone for a moment to get his thoughts together.

He had gone to the town a couple of times with Kurt and the others, enough so to know his way to a couple of places of interest. He really didn't feel like going to the ice cream shop where he and Kurt had had their first actual date, but there had been a comic store nearby where he could hopefully find some kind of an apology gift. Kurt wasn't quite as addicted to comic books and related stuff as Billy and Teddy were, but he was a fan of Avengers nonetheless, not that he ever would have admitted it to Pietro.

For all his good intentions, though, he never made it to the comic book store. He was on his way there, halfway through the park that served as a convenient shortcut, as raised voices caught his attention. Hurrying closer against every one of his instincts because apparently he was full of bad ideas today, he came across a rather unfortunate scene. Three teenagers, approximately his own age, were surrounding two children.

Well. Sometimes even bad ideas deserved to be followed through.

Walking closer, Eli recognized the kids as some of the younger students who had elected to stay at the school for the summer. Not that it took much of an effort on his part, mind, not when one of them had dark purple skin and the other was sprouting a pair of small, pointy horns. A small voice at the back of his mind wondered whether it had been their own decision not to go home.

They both looked frightened, he noted. As he got close enough to hear what was being said, it was clear enough why.

"You're just freaks, the lot of you," one of the teenagers growled. "Just looking at you makes me wanna throw up. You should be ashamed of yourselves, coming out to bother actual people like us."

"We haven't done anything wrong," the kid with horns said. He was clearly trying to be brave for his friend, but his voice was trembling, too. "We were born this way. It's not our fault."

"Oh, really?" Another one of the teens sneered. "If you were born like that, your moms should have just had the good sense to snap your necks then and there."

The purple kid winced, and Eli had had quite enough. "You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?" he said, walking closer. "Ashamed moms, that is. Yours must still be crying in shame for having had you."

"And who the fuck are you?" Great, their attention was shifting. That was the best he could hope for, really. "You some kind of a mutie, too?"

"Just dating one, thanks. So, you know, if you were hoping to get someone to go out with you if you just made enough mutants feel bad about themselves, you're shit outta luck." He got even closer, pushing the kids behind himself. He knew he wasn't much of a shield, but it was the best he could do right now. "Though if that's your motivation for bullying kids, I'm officially weirded out by your choice of targets."

"Mister Eli," one of the kids breathed, and okay, he was definitely going to have a word with Tommy, there was no way they could have learned that from anyone else. "What are you doing here?"

"Just passing through," he replied, doing his best to keep his tone casual. "Now, you kids run back to the mansion and get an adult or two, okay? I'm pretty sure I'm not actually qualified for this whole heroics stuff."

"Okay!" And just like that, the kids scampered off, while their tormentors started advancing on Eli instead. Well, he could hopefully keep them occupied long enough that the kids could get away, and after that, he could hopefully count on reinforcements arriving sooner rather than later.

Assuming Kurt wouldn't think getting beaten up by anti-mutant thug wannabes was just the lesson he needed, of course. Surely not, though. Kurt was not quite that vicious. Or so Eli certainly hoped.

For all that they had been ready to threaten two kids half their size, though, the idiots didn't seem quite as certain when faced with someone able and willing to fight back. Of course, they still had a significant advantage in numbers, but none of them were much of an opponent on their own. As long as he could keep moving so he wasn't completely surrounded at any point, he could hold his own until help arrived.

Honestly, things were going surprisingly well until one of them pulled out a knife.

Eli was only vaguely aware it had happened, a hint of the flash of steel and a growled curse about how he was going to get what was coming to him now, and then there was a sharp pain and he was crying out. Everything seemed to slow down for a moment, all his focus centered on the pain in his side.

Suddenly there was movement, more so than before, and voices shouting out in surprise. Then he found arms drawing him close, surprisingly strong arms that lifted him off the ground, and a familiar voice speaking into his ear.

"Just hold on," Tommy said, his voice low and hurried but still slow enough for Eli to understand what he was saying. "We've got a great doctor at the school, I'll get you there in a flash. And don't worry about those idiots, Billy'll make sure they hang around until someone else gets here."

Eli was about to say something, he got as far as opening his mouth, but then all of a sudden he was moving, faster than he ever had, and all he could do was close his eyes tight and try not to cry out in pain.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Though Kurt panics at first when he hears about the attack, it turns out that Eli is, in fact, better than all right. By the time his birthday comes around, he is more than ready for some celebration - especially when it seems he won't have to be parted from Kurt after all.

Even up on the roof, curled up in the shadow of a chimney and doing his best to be miserable, it was hard to miss the commotion going on down on the ground. Everyone certainly did seem determined to spoil Kurt's sulking as best as they could, buzzing about in a hurry. He hadn't seen who started it, but now it seemed everyone at the school was hurrying to one place or another, talking among themselves.

Then he spotted Charles and Wanda heading out of the school grounds. Well. That certainly was unusual enough to bear some investigation.

Kurt teleported down to the ground, glancing around. Erik was walking across the yard, his steps rushed, looking even more serious than usual. Kurt took another hop to drop at his side. "Uncle Erik? What's going on?"

"Ah, Kurt. Walk with me." Erik didn't slow down, but that was fine; he could leap along pretty fast. "I'm afraid something has happened."

"Yeah, I figured that out when I saw Uncle Charles going out in a hurry." Something was wrong, he just knew. "Something bad?"

"There was an attack." Erik sighed. "Bran and Josh were on their way to the store when some young hooligans thought it'd be a good idea to threaten little children just because they're mutants."

"What?" Kurt felt cold. "Were they hurt?"

"Not Bran and Josh, no. Fortunately for them, someone came along." Erik paused, which was not a good sign. "Elijah, however, was not as fortunate."

"Eli?" Kurt froze. "He was hurt?"

"Stabbed, I'm afraid." Another sigh. "Bran and Josh ran back here for help. Tommy got Eli away, while Billy is making sure the young idiots hang around until the police get there. Charles and Wanda went out to deal with that little mess."

"Oh, Gott." Kurt swallowed. He should have been there with Eli. "Will he be all right?"

"Hopefully. They got him here right away, and Hank is very good at stitching people up. I'm sure he'll be fine."

"Promise?" Kurt held back the urge to hop right over to the infirmary. He didn't even know if Eli would want him to show up.

"I promise. And you will see him as soon as he's closed up."

"Thanks." Kurt worried his lower lip. "I… I fought with him."

"Yes, well, I rather figured that out when you showed up clearly annoyed and without him." Erik patted him briefly on the shoulder. "Anything I should get angry at him for?"

"No! No, it's… it wasn't anything big." Kurt sighed. "Really, it was pretty stupid of me to get so angry."

"Well, you'll have your chance to talk with him soon." And indeed, they were almost at the infirmary. "Hopefully Hank will have stitched him up by now."

"I hope." Because he couldn't bear it if Eli had gotten badly hurt and he hadn't been there to help.

"We'll see soon." Erik walked in, looking around for the doctor. "Hank?"

"Ah, right. There you are." Hank walked closer, adjusting his glasses. "The wound was fortunately pretty neat, and nothing important was damaged. I managed to stitch him up without trouble, but the blood loss wasn't quite as simple to deal with."

Kurt might have paled if he hadn't been as blue and furry as the good doctor. "Blood loss?" He knew perfectly well they didn't exactly have a blood bank at hand at the school.

"Yes. Don't worry, though." Hank motioned for them to follow, walking further toward the patient rooms. "As it happens, we had a suitable donor at hand."

Stepping into the room, Kurt paused, unsure if he should approach any further. Eli was lying in a bed, apparently unconscious. In another bed was Isaiah, peacefully asleep. Of course. There was a good chance his grandfather would be a compatible donor. "Is that okay?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" Erik raised an eyebrow. "Isaiah is in perfect physical condition. He can spare some blood."

"That's not what I meant, though." And now he was feeling rather awkward. "It's just, I mean… super soldier blood. What if that has an effect?"

"Well, in that case, he's looking at a much easier recovery time." Hank shrugged. "Chances are it won't make much of a difference. And if it does, well, obviously his family has a good precedent of it working without any sudden monstrosities."

"Let's hope." Not that he would mind. Not as long as Eli stayed in one piece.

"You want to sit with him?" Hank offered. "I can't say when he wakes up, but I'm pretty sure I'm not the blue furball he'll want to see when he does."

"Right." Kurt swallowed. "Assuming he wants to see me, either."

"If there's one thing I have learned after many, many years of being in a relationship, it's that an argument will not go away with avoidance." Erik shook his head. "I'm sure he'll be quite happy to see that you are concerned about him."

"I hope so." Kurt swallowed his uncertainty, putting on a determined expression. "Because I'm not going anywhere until I see that he's going to be all right."

"And we wouldn't make you leave." Hank patted his shoulder. "Just don't disturb them. Even old super soldiers need rest after blood loss."

"Right." He was going to be quiet. He was not going to deprive Eli of any of the rest he needed.

He just had to see that Eli was all right.

*

"And how are you feeling today?"

Eli looked up from his book, smiling as Billy slipped into the room. "Excellent, actually," he said, placing a bookmark between the pages before setting the book down. "I'd be up and about except Kurt made me promise I'll stay put until Dr. McCoy has checked me over."

"And you'd better keep that promise or he'll teleport you back here himself, I'm sure." Billy chuckled as he made his way to the chair next to Eli's bed. "And how's the wound?"

"Gone, more or less." Eli lifted his shirt to show a mostly healed wound at his side. "It looks like it's been months rather than days."

"Well, at least we know the blood definitely did something." Billy raised his eyebrows. "You don't exactly look like someone who just got stabbed recently."

"And I don't really feel like someone who di." Eli tilted his head. "I was sure I'd die there. I know I've thanked you for the rescue before, but still, you know. Thanks."

"And the thanks still belong to Bran and Josh." Right, the two kids he'd saved. They had come to thank him rather profusely afterwards. "They came to find Tommy and me first, which I suppose makes sense. We got there pretty much as soon as they told us."

"Yeah, and saved me." However uncomfortable the ride back to the school had been. "I'm not going to stop thanking you."

"I'm pretty sure we should all be thanking you." Billy patted his hand. "If you hadn't happened to come along, who knows what might have happened to the kids."

"Yeah, well, I couldn't very well just walk away." Eli made a face. "And considering I was walking there just because I was sulking after fighting with Kurt, it's definitely not that admirable."

"Why did you fight, anyway? Kurt did mention that, he was all guilty and everything, but wouldn't go into the reasons."

"I said something stupid." Eli sighed. "Basically, I said I wanted to be a mutant because it'd make me special. And yes, I know it was really stupid of me."

"Well, I suppose you've learned your lesson about all that specialness." Billy looked rather serious. "Though I don't think you'd have needed it, really."

"Yeah, I wasn't thinking." Eli gave him a rueful smile. "I mean, I am a black bisexual nerd. I know all about getting the wrong kind of special attention."

Billy snorted, though not unkindly. "You try being a gay mutant geek who's half Jewish, half Romani."

"Yeah, I guess that'd be pretty bad, too." Eli managed a grin. "So not half android, then? Tommy lied to me?"

Now, Billy chuckled. "Yeah, well, dad isn't organic, that's true. Which also means we can't exactly have half his genes, now can we? Since he doesn't actually have any. So it's just easiest to say we've got the same background as mom does."

"Right." That… wasn't as logical as he might have liked. "How does that work, then?"

"We're still not sure exactly how we're made up genetically." Billy shrugged. "Sure, there are tests we could do, but Mom doesn't think those are in any way necessary. All that matters is that we're her and Dad's kids."

"You must have some theories, though." At least he couldn't imagine being in such a situation and not at least wondering.

"Of course." Billy shrugged. "The older we get, the more likely it seems we were cloned off Uncle Pietro. Doesn't exactly explain the colors, but then the white hair is apparently some kind of genetic defect anyway; maybe it didn't trigger for me."

"That's… kind of freaky. I mean, don't take this the wrong way, but he is your uncle after all."

"Don't worry, I'm not offended." Billy chuckled. "We're basically magic babies. No matter how it happened, it's pretty freaky by default. But then, what's ever normal in this place?"

Eli was about to reply with something hopefully witty, but was interrupted by a knock to the window. This was quite the feat, considering they were on the second floor. Looking over, he and Billy saw Kurt crouched on the window sill, grinning.

"Just what I needed, proof," Billy chuckled, getting up from his seat. "I'll let him in, shall I? And then I'll leave you two alone."

"No, no," Eli chuckled. "I'm still a week from turning legal, Raven would have your hide if you were a co-conspirator in anything untoward."

"Well, then I'll be happy to keep an eye on the two of you." Billy opened the window, letting Kurt leap in. "Assuming you will behave with just me keeping watch."

Kurt chuckled. "Don't worry, I'm not quite that happy to see him." He grinned, and it was nothing but white teeth in soft darkness. "I can very well wait another week."

It was certainly a good thing that visible blushes were somewhat beyond Eli's capabilities.

*

When Eli had first brought up the idea of his coming to the mansion over the summer, he hadn't really paid much thought to the matter of his upcoming birthday.

At first it had seemed like such a distant thing, and after that, not very important. He wasn't turning five, after all; he had figured they'd probably go out for pizza or something with Kurt and the twins and Teddy, and that would be it. It certainly would have been quite enough for him. Actually turning seventeen would have been enough of a treat in itself.

Of course, when he had mentioned this over lunch the other day, the others had been absolutely appalled, Charles most of all. It just wouldn't do, they had insisted, for him to make the celebration of his birthday something they might have just as well done on any other day. Then they had shot down his protests about not wanting to be a bother by pointing out that giving him a proper birthday party was surely the least they could do for him after his bravery. At that point, it had been the easiest just to let them do as they wished instead of begging for more embarrassment.

What he had expected, more or less, was what his birthdays with his family had been like, with cake and soda, and a lot of noise. There was all that, and other treats, and far more people than he had ever expected. It seemed everyone who was staying at the mansion for the summer was present, not that that was much of a surprise; with all the food that had been set out, of course everyone there would show up to partake of it. However, it wasn't just limited to the few students and teachers who had nowhere better to be. No, his grandma was there, flown in by Stark, and arriving in quite the company.

Eli had to admit, he had never thought he'd have the Avengers coming to his birthday party. Then, he still wasn't entirely sure that was actually happening. Surely that this was some kind of a bizarre dream.

Though then, Kurt's hand in his felt real enough as he got dragged around to be introduced to everyone.

There was Captain America, the official Captain America speaking with his grandfather — with, not at, like so many discussions with Isaiah tended to go. His grandmother, not far from Isaiah's side, was deep in a conversation with Black Widow and the Scarlet Witch; an unusual combination, but they seemed to get along quite well. Not that it surprised him terribly much that his grandmother would find some common ground with some of the most dangerous women he had ever heard of. She was a force of nature all her own, after all.

Hawkeye was busy juggling with sharp kitchen implements to amuse the kids, while Hulk — Dr. Banner, but just say Bruce, as he had introduced himself, he seemed like a rather pleasant man, not too noisy — was teaching one of the smallest girls how to fold a napkin into the shape of a swan. Tony Stark was arguing with Tommy about something, the conversation going too fast for Eli to truly keep track of. Billy seemed to understand well enough to find some entertainment in it, Teddy right by his side. The sight of them practically glued together made Eli lean just a bit closer to Kurt. He felt a bit silly for doing so, but the smile and a squeeze of his hand he received in return were enough of a reward to make him forget the awkwardness of it.

"You know," Kurt murmured, straightening up just enough to speak into his ear, "I think you've done enough socializing for a moment."

"Do you, now?" Eli's lips twitched just a bit. "And what do you suggest I do now instead?"

"Sneak off with me?" Kurt's grin was as infectious as ever. Not that being near him didn't make Eli want to smile regardless.

"You think anyone will notice?"

"Probably." Kurt shrugged. "As to whether they'll care, though, I'm less convinced. We have been very patient, after all."

"True enough, I guess." Eli gave him a small grin. "Take me away, then?"

"As you wish." Kurt took his other hand as well, and then, with a lurch of his stomach, Eli found himself in Kurt's room.

"I'm seventeen now," Eli pointed out the obvious. "No more open doors."

"And a good thing, too." He was drawn close by big, warm hands, and yes, he rather liked that. "Happy birthday," murmured Kurt, and then there were soft lips covering his own, hands sliding along his arms, and everywhere he touched there was soft, velvety fur over sleek muscle.

Kurt's tail curled itself around his leg, and, yeah, maybe it was time to stop thinking overly much.

*

Kurt's tail was twitching.

Eli watched it with half-closed eyes, half tempted to reach out and grab it where the tip of it was drawing a lazy circle in the air above them. Of course, doing that would not have earned him a happy boyfriend, so it was perhaps just as well he didn't. Right now all he wanted to do was enjoy the moment.

Kurt shifted, his head resting on Eli's chest, a three-fingered hand drawing patterns along his side. He was very warm against Eli, the fur feeling even softer than it did against Eli's hands.

"That was," Eli murmured, one hand sliding down Kurt's warm back, "probably the best birthday present I've ever had."

"Probably?" Kurt shifted again, the arm that had been half thrown over Eli's chest now propping Kurt's head up to look at him. "What's the contender?"

Eli gave him a grin. "The knowledge that I'm now allowed to do this again?"

Kurt chuckled. "I suppose that's good enough an answer."

"Glad you approve." Eli slid his hand further up to bring his arm up around Kurt's back. "It's a pity summer's going to be over far too soon."

"And you'll have to be back in the city." Kurt's tail kept drawing its little circle. "The terrible burden of responsibilities."

"Indeed." Eli sighed. "Back to the long distance, then, I guess."

"Or maybe not." As Eli raised his eyebrows in question, Kurt gave him a grin. "You know, I had a very interesting chat at the party."

"Oh? About what? And with whom?" They had been separated for a while as Eli talked with his grandma, so he wasn't sure who all Kurt had been socializing with.

"Tony Stark." Kurt's grin got wider. "Apparently my dear cousins have spoken very highly of me. Stark and Cap are thinking of offering me a probationary spot on the team."

"The team?" Eli blinked. "You mean… you'd be an Avenger?"

"That's the plan." Kurt wriggled a bit closer. "Apparently it's decent pay and not too boring. The hours can be a bit unpredictable, but it all comes with free room and board right in the middle of Manhattan."

"And are you going to accept?" It certainly sounded like it, but he'd rather not make any assumptions.

"I'll be moving into the Tower around the time the schools start." Kurt grinned. "No special reason for the timing, of course."

"Of course." Eli chuckled. "Why do I get the feeling I'm going to have to help you with the move?"

"Well, what else would I have my very own super soldier for?"

"You know what this means, right?" Eli couldn't help but grin at his boyfriend like an excited little kid. "I'll be dating a superhero."

"Well," Kurt said, leaning in for a kiss, "makes two of us, then."

And, yeah, maybe things would turn out fine.


End file.
